Viên Dương Quán

This is an ancient Đạo Quán (Taoist temple), now converted into a Buddhist pagoda. The original quán belonged to the "Đan Sơn Tứ Quán" system in the Đoài region, and is currently located to the east of Chiền village, Đức Thượng commune, Hoài Đức district, Hanoi city. The quán is commonly known as Quán Chiền, with the formal name Viên Dương Đạo Quán.

Prime Minister Lữ Gia of the Triệu dynasty passed through this area and saw two immortals playing chess. He dismounted his horse and bowed in greeting, whereupon the immortals flew away. Because of this, he had a đạo quán (Taoist temple) built for Taoist practitioners to cultivate. Later, a Taoist named Lý Trang practised here, living on wild vegetables by day and reciting the Ngọc Hoàng Bản Hạnh sutra by night. When the wild vegetable plant transformed into an Acorus calamus (Xương Bồ) growing on the rock, the Taoist attained enlightenment and ascended to heaven as an immortal. From then on, this district was called Đan Sơn.

In the year Ất Dậu, during the reign of Mạc Mục Tông (1585), Hiển Cung Đại phu of the Mạc dynasty, Nguyễn Định, sponsored the construction of the Upper Hall and Rear Hall. This event is still recorded on a stele from the 2nd year of Hưng Trị (1589), currently kept at the quán. In the 16th year of Gia Long (1817), the large "Viên Dương Quán Bell" was cast. In 1934, during the Bảo Đại era, the Tiền Đường (Front Hall) was restored. Viên Dương Quán Pagoda was classified as a provincial/city-level heritage site by Decision No. 1230/QĐ-UBND dated 10 March 2011.

Originally a Đạo Quán, but later converted into a pagoda, Viên Dương Quán now preserves two main systems of statues: Buddhist and Taoist.

This system of statues is as complete as that of any other Northern pagoda:

The Tiền Đường (Front Hall) includes, on the right from the entrance, the altar of Đức Chúa Ông with statues of Chúa Ông, Già Lam, Chân Tể, and next to it the Khuyến Thiện altar; on the left are statues of Trừng Ác, Thánh Hiền, Diện Nhiên, Đại Sĩ. The Thượng Điện (Upper Hall) includes statues such as the Three Worlds (Tam Thế), Chuẩn Đề, Quan Âm Hương Tích Cave, Quan Âm Thị Kính Cave, Cửu Long, Phạm Thiên, and Đế Thích. The Địa Tạng Hall houses the statue of Địa Tạng. The Quan Âm Pavilion contains the statue of Bạch Y Quan Âm. The Ancestor Hall (Nhà Tổ) has the statue of the Patriarch (Tổ Sư)...

This system of statues is mainly displayed in the central bay of the front hall and in front of the upper hall. Unlike other đạo quán converted into pagodas such as Linh Tiên Quán, Lão Quân Quán, Lâm Dương Quán, where Taoist statues are usually placed at the innermost part, here the statues are displayed at the front, directly below the Buddhist altar.

The upper tier consists of the Three Pure Ones (Tam Thanh): Nguyên Thủy Thiên Tôn, Linh Bảo Thiên Tôn, and Đạo Đức Thiên Tôn (notably, the statue of Đạo Đức Thiên Tôn here is carved with a white beard, resembling the incarnation of Lão Quân, rather than the usual black beard). The second tier includes: Ngọc Hoàng, Nam Tào, and Bắc Đẩu. The third tier includes: Huyền Thiên Trấn Vũ (interestingly, the statue of Trấn Vũ here is placed between Phạm Thiên and Đế Thích, and the Cửu Long pedestal is set slightly lower).

Statues of Hậu (female deities or patrons), those who contributed to the construction of the pagoda, and statues of the Tam Tứ Phủ (Three and Four Palaces deities).

Taoist Lý Trang

Junior Monk Đàm Văn Liêm?